Finance and Development Planning Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan and Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC) Managing Director Mohammed M. Sheriff are facing contempt proceedings before the Debt Court of Montserrado County over an alleged failure to satisfy a US$415,327.08 judgment debt owed to ELTEL Network Liberia
The case arises from a commercial dispute between LEC and ELTEL Network Liberia, the local subsidiary of Swedish infrastructure company Eltel Group, over a 2016 contract involving the supply of low-voltage electrical materials.
Court documents obtained by this paper indicate that ELTEL, through its Attorney-in-Fact, Hans Armstrong, filed a legal action in June 2024, alleging that LEC failed to pay for equipment and related services provided under the agreement.
The dispute was later submitted to arbitration, where the arbitral panel reportedly found LEC liable for US$364,322 in principle. Following the arbitration decision, the Debt Court of Montserrado County on February 4, 2026, entered a Final Payment Order requiring payment of US$415,327.08. The amount includes the principal award, accrued statutory interest, legal fees, and court costs. The order followed a hearing on February 3, 2026, during which LEC was represented by legal counsel.
With the judgment allegedly still unpaid, ELTEL’s legal team filed a Bill of Information before the Debt Court, seeking enforcement of the court’s final order. A Bill of Information is a legal procedure through which a party may ask the court to address alleged non-compliance with or obstruction of a final judgment.
In its filing, ELTEL alleges that LEC sought intervention from the Executive Mansion concerning the judgment debt. The company further claims that President Joseph Nyuma Boakai, Sr., on July 3, 2026, instructed the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning to facilitate payment of the outstanding judgment.
ELTEL maintains, however, that no payment had been made at the time it filed the contempt proceedings. The allegations are contained in ELTEL’s court filings and have not been determined by the court. According to the court docket, the Debt Court on July 7, 2026, issued a summons for contempt, directing LEC Managing Director Mohammed M. Sheriff and other LEC executives to appear and explain why they should not be held in contempt for allegedly failing to comply with the court’s final payment order.
ELTEL is asking the court to find Minister Ngafuan and Managing Director Sheriff in willful contempt and to compel payment of the US$415,327.08 into the court’s escrow account.
Under Liberian law, a finding of willful contempt can lead to sanctions, which may include fines, sequestration of assets, and, in certain circumstances, imprisonment until the contempt is purged, depending on the court’s determination.
However, neither Minister Ngafuan nor Managing Director Sheriff has been found guilty of contempt at this stage, and the allegations remain before the court for determination. The Debt Court is expected to consider ELTEL’s application, including the request for enforcement and whether additional time should be granted for compliance.
The case has drawn attention to the enforcement of commercial arbitration awards involving state-owned entities and could have broader implications for Liberia’s business and investment environment, particularly regarding the enforcement of contractual obligations and court judgments.
